N.Y. Assemblywoman Monique Chandler-Waterman faces Hercules Reid in key Brooklyn primary

Tuesday’s primary election is going to feel like déjà vu for voters in Brooklyn’s 58th Assembly District.

Democratic Assemblywoman Monique Chandler-Waterman, who won a special election last month to represent the East Flatbush district, is back on the ballot in Tuesday’s primary to once again face off against Hercules Reid, a former City Hall aide who holds Mayor Adams’ endorsement in the race.

In their first matchup in the special election on May 24, Chandler-Waterman cruised to victory with a 61-point margin over Reid, who was running as a third-party candidate in that very low turnout contest.

Hercules Reid (left) and New York State Assemblywoman Monique Chandler-Waterman (D-Brooklyn).

In Tuesday’s rematch, however, both Chandler-Waterman and Reid will run on the Democratic line. Turnout is also likely to be higher this time around — as the races for governor and lieutenant governor are on the ballot — and Reid has argued that could benefit him.

“Last time, there was an ability to paint me as not being a Democrat. Being able to run in the Democratic primary, there is no upper hand against me,” Reid told the Daily News last week.

But Chandler-Waterman, a former day care center operator and community activist who was born and raised in the 58th District, said in a recent interview she’s confident her constituents will have her back on Primary Day.

“The body of work that I have done here gives me the knowledge to serve this community. I’m the only candidate who has that body of experience, and I think our community knows who has done the work on the ground,” said Chandler-Waterman, who has positioned herself as the most progressive candidate in the race.

New York State Assemblywoman Monique Chandler-Waterman (D-Brooklyn) (Facebook/)

In a not-so-subtle dig at Reid’s top campaign supporter, Chandler-Waterman added, “The only endorsement that matters is the people who vote, and our community understands that.”

Reid, meantime, said he isn’t counting on Adams to be a kingmaker in Tuesday’s election.

“I don’t necessarily see it as a make or break,” he said of the mayor’s endorsement. “When I expressed to him that I wanted to run, I never went into this thinking that his endorsement would be a deciding factor. It’s icing on the cake.”

At the same time, Reid said, “There’s definitely a lot of people in the district I’ve encountered who say, ‘Oh wow, the mayor supports you.’”

Adams has been rather hands-on in the 58th District race. In addition to endorsing Reid and holding multiple campaign events with him this spring, the mayor appeared as a “special guest” at a Monday night fund-raiser for the candidate at a Caribbean restaurant in East Flatbush.

Then-Brooklyn borough president Eric Adams (left) and Hercules Reid (right) outside Federal Court in Brooklyn, New York on Jan. 30, 2017. (Todd Maisel/)

Reid, who at 29 would become one of the youngest members of the state Legislature if elected, has worked for Adams since 2019, when he became an assistant in the then-Brooklyn borough president’s office.

After his inauguration as mayor, Adams brought on Reid as an aide at City Hall, but he only stayed in that job for 19 days. A few months later, Reid landed a senior post at the School Construction Authority, the Department of Education’s design and build arm, and though he says Adams had nothing to do with him getting that job, he acknowledged to The News last month that the optics of the hire weren’t great.

In an echo of Adams’ 2021 mayoral bid, Reid has centered his Assembly campaign on public safety, which he described as the “top of the list” issue for 58th District voters.

“From older adults who aren’t leaving home unless they have to because they don’t feel safe, to the young people who don’t feel safe,” said Reid, who has voiced support for some of Adams’ proposed reversals of criminal justice reforms in Albany as part of his public safety platform.

Chandler-Waterman, by contrast, has adopted a more progressive public safety philosophy that calls for phasing out the use of police in some emergencies. “The police should not respond to mental health emergencies,” she said.

Adams’ decision to endorse Reid over Chandler-Waterman this spring rubbed some lawmakers in Albany the wrong way, as she was the Democratic special election nominee and the candidate endorsed by ex-Assemblyman Nick Perry, who vacated the 58th District seat to become the U.S. ambassador to Jamaica.

Reid’s loss in the special election dealt a blow to Adams in diminishing the power of his endorsement. The outcome of Tuesday’s primary thereby serves as a political barometer of sorts for Adams, who has only issued four other endorsements in this state legislative election cycle.

Whoever wins Tuesday will have to face a Republican candidate in November’s general election. However, the 58th District, which includes parts of Brownsville and Canarsie in addition to East Flatbush, is considered safely blue, providing the Democratic primary winner with a glide path in November.